Dear Dr. Richard Geraghty,
The "Intrinsic Evils," such as abortion (Obama voted
three times against the Born Alive Protection Act and
then falsely denied this), same-sex marriage (Obama
appointed two supreme court judges who voted radically
for abortion and same-sex marriage), attacks on freedom
of religion (e.g. Health and Human Services requiring
employers to cover sterilization), EMBRYONIC stem cell
research, euthanasia, and cloning are all promoted and
voted for in the Democratic Party's platform!!!! All of
the other issues are debatable!! The Republican Party’s
platform votes against these “Intrinsic Evils!!!!”
Therefore, why does not the Roman Catholic Church’s
leadership make this crystal clear by shouting this
daily!!!!!? I know this is harsh, because two thirds of
the Bishops do shout this, but one third of the Bishops
do not!!!! Consequently, the laity is confused and/or
allowed to rationalize about voting for “Intrinsic
Evils!!” Please beg daily all the Bishops to make this
clear, and to stop being afraid to take a stand or a
political side!! Being politically correct is not being
holy, when one political party’s platform is voting for
all five “Intrinsic Evils,” and the other political
party’s platform is voting against all five “Intrinsic
Evils!!” Thank You. (Paul Pakstis)

Answer by Richard Geraghty on 11/2/2013:

Dear Paul,

I think you are being overly generous in saying that two thirds of the Bishops are shouting
out against intrinsic evils and one third are silent. But let that be. I also think that you are
being over optimistic about Republicans being forces for good because they have on their
platform a condemnation of intrinsic evils. The platforms are more like a big tent to include
the religious element. But when it comes to practice big government wins out many times.
Now Pope Francis has taken another angle. While he insists that intrinsic evils should be
preached against day in and day out, they are not the only things to be opposed. For very
large segments of the population are being crushed by the way that economics, both
Capitalist, Communist, and Socialistic, are being carried out. People on the bottom are being
driven more deeply into the bottom. There is need, then, for those better off to open their
hearts to the oppressed, to identify with them. This was the attitude of St. Francis who
identified with the poor and even with the birds, fish, and wolves. People caught in the toils
of acting promiscuously with the opposite sex or the same sex, or of aborting their own
babies, have go be told that they are sinning. But they will not listen to these admonitions
unless they come from clergy and laity who have as warm a heart for other sinners as they
have for their own sins. Everybody is a sinner in their own way, the upper classes insisting
they have a right to their wealth because they worked so hard for it, and the lower classes
eating themselves up with envy and resentment. The relationship is that of the self righteous
greedy to the self righteous resentful. Conflict between the classes is the inevitable result.
What is needed is an open heart, a warm hearted person, an open church, a warm hearted
church. But the openness and the warmth must come from a person who is fully orthodox.
While Christ openly attacked the religious leaders of his day, he spent most of his time going
about the country healing the blind, sick and lame, even feeding everybody with the loaves
and fishes. He wept over Jerusalem, saying he would have taken it under his wing as a
mother hen did its chicks. But He was rejected. And so he went out and was crucified for
them. That's what I mean by an open and warm heart.